Expect The Unexpected
by MoonlightGurl
Summary: AUish. James Potter and Lily Evans are as different as day and night, and always at each others' throats. Then how did they fall in love? They didn't but Jeremy and Lea did!
1. Prologue

**E**x**p**e**c**t T**h**e **U**n**e**x**p**e**c**t**e**d

**S**u**m**m**a**r**y****: **James Potter is the heir to millions while Lily Evans is someone who somehow wound up in happy household. The two are constantly at each others' throats. What are the chances that they end up falling in love – with each other? None at all, of course! But there are chances that Jeremy and Lea can fall in love, and who are they?

**00.** P**r**o**l**o**g**u**e**

You lived in a world with darkness. Where no one would accept you. Those angels took you in. Turned you into the girl you are. But she could never accept you. Then, you turned older. You went away, returning only for some fragments of time. You remained close to your guardian angels but she never gave you the chance. You could never prove that you loved her. That she was your ideal. You yearned for acceptance. From her. From your sister.

Going away was in some ways, the best thing that could happen to you. You had the opportunity to be what you could have never been at home. You could bring out your inner you. You had people who loved you; liked your for what you were. You had someone who made you feel that you weren't worthless. That you weren't a freak. Your personality made you liked by some, disliked by some. You sucked it up.

But then, that correspondence started. In which he didn't know who you were. You didn't know who he was. You just interacted. Let out your feelings. It didn't matter that he might be someone who hated you in reality, or someone who would never like you as you. It mattered that he _cared_.

You didn't think about it. You didn't think what the consequences would be if you were Lily Evans. And he was James Potter.

**A/N: I'm open to reviews whether it be praise or criticism. I think I can take flames; it would help me make my writing better. So if you read, do review. Thanks. And yeah, I'm just another Lily/James fanatic; it just was that my earlier stories on them sucked. Hope this one's much better. **


	2. Chapter 1

**E**x**p**e**c**t T**h**e **U**n**e**x**p**e**c**t**e**d

**S**u**m**m**a**r**y****: AUish. **James Potter is the heir to millions while Lily Evans is someone who somehow wound up in happy household. The two are constantly at each others' throats. What are the chances that they end up falling in love – with each other? None at all, of course! But there are chances that Jeremy and Lea can fall in love, and who are they?

**D**i**s**c**l**a**i**m**e**r**:** I don't anything. Everything belongs to the famously intelligent JK Rowling. Though I do own the plot, and a few characters I made up. Don't sue me as I don't own anything you recognize!

**0**1.** The ****St**a**r**t of **A**ll.

The air around the two crackled with intensity, as they stared each other down. Both had their wands drawn in front of them, and pointed at the other.

"Potter, I'm warning you . . ." Lily said threateningly.

She quickly used a Shield Charm to repel the jinx Potter sent her way.

"What, Evans? What're you going to do? Give me detention? We're not even at school yet!" James said sarcastically.

Lily's eyes narrowed as she used a non-verbal spell at him. There was a bark of laughter from Potter's best friend; Sirius Black, as James flipped into the air and landed on the floor, his hair and clothes pink. "Potter, I wouldn't dream of wasting time giving you detention. I'll leave it to the teachers." Lily gave him a disgusted look as she walked off, with her friends to their compartment.

"This has to be a world record, Prongs, mate." Sirius chortled. "Evans and you having a duel on the _train. _You didn't even wait to get to Hogwarts before fighting."

James got off the floor, as Remus Lupin, another friend used the counter-curse on him to get the pink color off him. "Damn, Evans," James muttered.

"Really, James. I can't understand why you two fight with each other so much. Lily is a perfectly nice girl," Remus said sensibly.

"Please, Moony. That girl is an absolute dragon; less said 'bout her will be better. I only didn't jinx her back because there were first years staring at us and though I would beg to differ, she _is_ a girl," James huffed.

He felt a hard thump on his back. His best mate, Sirius, was rolling eyes. "And the squirts will know soon enough about how you two always fight and duel. Hell, I like to duel old Snivellius, but not _all_ the time like you, Prongs. I think you should try _not_ arguing with Lily ever chance you get."

James stared at his best friend in disbelief, who had now stretched himself on a seat in their compartment. "Merlin, Padfoot. I never thought I would hear this from you."

Sirius shrugged as he stretched on the seat in their compartment. "Someone has to."

James set up the chess board. "Just forget it, guys. This happens a lot and will probably keep happening. Okay, who's playing chess with me?"

Remus volunteered to do so and moments later, the whole fight had been forgotten as James said, it happened too often.

**&**

Lily Evans smiled as she entered the compartment with her arm around her best friend, Riley Clarkson's shoulder. There was a general cry of greeting from her other friends as they both sprawled on the seats.

Lily looked around happily. She was with the people she loved most, going to her home and she could finally forget the troubles back at her figurative home. She looked around her friends and grinned, catching Edward's eye.

"Hey, Ed." Lily said, as she helped herself to some Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans.

Edward Stanley grinned back. "Hey Lil. Looking gorgeous, babe."

Lily laughed. She knew that Ed was in love with a Hufflepuff in their year but he still bothered with mock flirting with her all the time. But still, Ed's compliment certainly wasn't a lie. Lily Evans was a stunning sixth year, with her red tresses and brilliant green eyes. Her mischievous smile could do wonders, and it helped that she had an amazing voice to match her looks and personality. But it was a huge mystery for the students at Hogwarts, at the fact that she didn't date.

Her best friend, Riley yawned at the moment. "Of course, she looks great, Ed. She's my best friend, remember?" Riley sent a playful smile at Lily, who pretended to strangle her.

Riley Clarkson was Lily's opposite in nearly every way. Her physical appearance too differed from her best friend's. While Lily was petite and clumsy, Riley was tall and graceful. Opposed to Lily's red hair, Riley had long blond waves. Riley's bright blue eyes were strikingly different from Lily's emeralds. Lily was a Muggleborn, Riley was a Pureblood, whose father was an important figure in the Ministry of Magic. While Lily preferred to distance herself from the dating scene, Riley was popular among guys. And also, Lily had the hottest temper in the world while Riley could be as calm as a butterfly at times. Despite, the glaring differences they had a very strong bond and Lily often joked that Riley was her 'blood' sister.

A hand yanked at Lily's ponytail. "Hey!" she glared at the offender, who stared lazily back. "Okay, I'm going to ignore that."

Nathan McCoy grinned at her. "Miss me?"

"Why would anyone ever miss a prat like you?" Lily grumbled but a smile fought its way to her face. Nathan was her best friend after Riley. It was just unfortunate that he could be such a git at times.

Lily was jostled out of her thoughts when their compartment door slid open and a tall figure stumbled in. "Hey Ed, Lil, Riles! What's cooking, guys?"

"Hey, Danny!" Riley greeted him, helping him up from the floor. "What's got you so excited?"

Danny Clearwater waved a piece of parchment excitedly. "This!"

"And this is?" Ed questioned amusedly.

"Madam Rosmerta's reply! She wants us to play!" Danny shouted loudly.

"Congrats, you guys!" Violet, Ed's twin, beamed.

Then, all hell broke loose; all three of them at first just stared. And then jumped up, and began to whoop. They were all exclaiming excitedly and in a group hug, with Lily squished in the middle, when the door slid open yet again.

A blonde head poked in; and smiled. "I was sure it was you guys! I knew you would get the gig!" Sandra, Dan's girlfriend said happily, joining in the group hug.

"Okay, you guys get off of me!" Lily cried out, trying to push her friends away. Edward had his arms around her, with Riley squashing them both, and then Dan on top of the three, while Nathan kept pinching Lily's cheeks. Violet too stood in the hug, and the newly added Sandra.

Lily, Ed, Nathan and Dan had formed a band the previous year, _The Waves_. They played frequently on Hogwarts' dances and events but had only played once at the Three Broomsticks in Hogsmeade. Being asked to play again was a good thing for their budding music careers, Lily thought.

"Okay, Riles. You better jot it down in our book," Dan said, as he sat down on a seat with Sandra curled next to him.

Riley raised an eyebrow. "And why would I do that?"

"'Cause you're our manager, of course," Ed answered.

The group burst into laughter, all of them in high spirits.

**&**

"First years! Gryffindor first years, follow me!" Lily called down the Gryffindor table.

She smiled encouragingly at the crowd of frightened eleven year olds before her. "Come on, you lot. I'll show you the Gryffindor tower. My name is Lily Evans and I'm a prefect, so you can ask anything. I'll be happy to help! Okay, this way!"

She led them through halls and staircases, chatting to them the entire time, to make them feel at ease. They reached the portrait of the Fat Lady. "Password?" she asked primly.

Lily smiled. "Hello! _Wingardium Leviosa!_ Alright, you have to remember the passwords or the Fat Lady won't let you in." She reminded them, as they scrambled over the portrait hole. "Now, girls' dormitories there, and the boys' there. Have a great time at Hogwarts!" She waved at the first years who were beginning to ascend the staircases which would lead them to their new rooms.

"Miss Evans?" a timid voice spoke. Lily turned to find a small girl looking up at her.

"No need to call me that, Mina. Call me Lily." Lily smiled.

"Lily. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course." Lily smiled warmly.

Mina's lip trembled. "Does it matter having non-magical parents?"

"Of course not, sweetie! Why do you say so?" Lily said anxiously.

Mina looked back at her with wide eyes. "There were boys on the train. They called me . . . mudblood. Jenny told me it was a bad word for muggleborns."

Lily hugged her. "Don't listen to anyone, Mina. You're a witch, and you'll remain one. I'm sure you'll do great." Lily assured her silent question.

Mina nodded, swallowing. "Thank you, Lily."

Mina started to walk away. "Any time, Mina."

Lily sank into an armchair. Students were all around her, talking and laughing but she couldn't get Mina's sad expression out of her head. She remembered how she had felt when some older guys had called her a mudblood as well on her first train ride. She clenched her fists.

"Lily-billy, you alright?"

She looked up in surprise.

A very tall and well built guy stood before her. His hair fell elegantly into his gray eyes, which though he was smiling, looked worried.

"Hey Sirius. Good summer?"

"Ah, great." He gave her a cynical smile. She wondered if he had finally run away from home. "But, are you okay?"

Lily started. "I'm fine. Why wouldn't I be?"

Sirius grinned. "Maybe 'cause you're scaring those second years by your expression, and you look like you're ready to rip out someone's throat. And Prongs isn't even around."

Lily rolled her eyes and unclenched her fist. "It's nothing; just a bit worried. But," her eyes began to twinkle. "When are you planning to ask Riley out?"

Sirius looked horrified at the idea. "Why would I ever want to do_ that_?"

Lily laughed, gently hitting his shoulder. "We all know you've been wanting to do that since ages!"

Sirius grimaced. "No way!"

Lily burst out into laughter, but it was lost in her throat as another figure came up from behind Sirius. She gave him a cold look, and swept off after flashing a smile at Sirius. She bounced off to the group where her own friends sat, and flung herself in an armchair.

"I can't wait for classes to start!" she exclaimed.

Riley rolled her eyes. "Are you crazy? I can wait till an eternity for them to start!"

**&**

"Guess that eternity hates me," Riley moaned, as Lily chuckled. Both were walking over to the Great Hall for breakfast before their classes.

"Come on, breakfast awaits us!" Lily trilled as she ran into the Hall, and plopped down on a seat opposite to Nathan.

"Hey Nate!"

Nathan looked up from his fully loaded plate at a chipper Lily and a disgruntled Riley. "How are you so awake?" Nate smiled.

Lily shrugged and pulled the toast rack towards her. She had just taken a sip from her goblet of orange juice when the morning post arrived.

Hundreds and thousand of owls swarmed in through the high windows. The Hall was filled with different sorts of owls, in different colors. Lily felt her lips stretching in a huge smile as a tawny owl made its way towards her. "Hey, Romero!"

Romero flew on her shoulder and held out its leg. Lily undid the package and offered the owl her juice. While the owl drank thirstily, Lily ripped open the letter, aware that her two best friends were watching her.

Lea,

_Settled in alright? I love being back at Hogwarts, don't you? But, I swear McGonagall's gotten crabbier over the summer, and Slughorn even more . . . sluggish. How was your summer, by the way? I didn't get to owl you in August 'cause my mum grounded my friend and I over something that was _his_ fault. The prat._

_And yeah, what about you're OWLs? You tell, then I will! _

_Also, there's something for you in the package. Hope you like it!_

Jeremy.

_P.S. I hope Romero didn't faint over you. Don't know what the problem is with the bloody owl any way._

Lily beamed; getting letters and notes from Jeremy made her day. As Romero flew away, Lily set the parchment on her lap and reached over to put the package carefully in her messenger bag. Before Riley and Nate could ask her any questions, Professor McGonagall swept over to them

The tall, thin woman was the Head of their house. She didn't stand any nonsense for students, and was not a woman to cross. She raised an eyebrow as Sirius Black waved merrily at her from some way down the long House table.

"Ah, Miss Clarkson. Let's get your timetable out of the way." Professor McGonagall peered at the parchment in her hands. "Fine, fine, fine," she muttered under her breath. She handed Riley her timetable, who grimaced at it as the Transfiguration teacher turned to Lily.

"Miss Evans, congratulations on your eleven OWLs. Exceptional work, I must say," McGonagall smiled, tight lipped.

"Thank you, Professor." Lily smiled embarrassedly.

"Now, you would like to continue Charms, Transfiguration, DADA, Potions, Herbology and Arthimancy, is that correct?" Lily nodded. "I am very sure that the teachers would love to have you back in their classes. Here." She handed her a piece of parchment, which Lily eagerly began to memorize.

Riley watched her, while McGonagall sorted Nate's classes. "Seriously, Lil, for a sixteen year old to be this excited for classes is seriously not right."

"Oh, shut up."

**&**

"No way, Marie! James Potter is like, the most gorgeous guy on Earth! Sure, Sirius is hot and all but no one can compare to Jamesie!"

Lily wrinkled her nose as she exited the girls' washroom during lunch with Riley. "These types of conversations make me wonder why girls are so empty-headed."

"Hey, speak for yourself." Riley laughed. "Lil, come on. This is normal. Girls discuss guys all the time, not that you would know it. Weirdo," Riley said teasingly as the both entered the Great Hall. "And yeah, you can't deny that James _is_ gorgeous. That, and the fact that he has an awesome personality."

Lily gave her a scathing look.

"But he is! If we hadn't been friends since ages I would take him for myself!" Riley argued.

Lily rolled her eyes. Sure, James Potter was pretty good-looking but he wasn't her type. He was tall, towering over her actually, and had a ripped body considering the amount of Quidditch he played. His hair was what Lily had nicknamed as a scrubbing brush, as it stuck out in all directions. His hazel eyes, ever so sparkling with mischief, usually seemed to emit hate whenever he would look at her. And his personality . . . it was never good to get Lily started on that.

How could she ever have positive things to a guy like that? And the fact that he had pushed her in the lake during their boat ride in their first year. That and the fact that he loved arguing, fighting and dueling with her.

As they took seats at the Gryffindor table, Lily rummaged in her bag for a hair clip. She came across the package from Jeremy she hadn't had the chance to open. Her heart gave a pleasant lurch. She hurriedly scooped a few spoonfuls and gulped from her goblet. Her surprised friends looked at her in astonishment as she hurried through her lunch.

"I'll catch you guys later! I've got something to do, alright?" Lily said hurriedly, shouldered her bag and marched out.

Ed and Danny stared after her. Only Riley and Nate seemed unperturbed. They were used to such behavior from their best friend when she was eager to reply to her pen friend.

**&**

**A/N: Hope y'all like it! Tell me about it all in your review! :D**


	3. Chapter 2

* * *

**E**x**p**e**c**t T**h**e **U**n**e**x**p**e**c**t**e**d

**S**u**m**m**a**r**y****: Au-ish. **James Potter is the heir to millions while Lily Evans is someone who somehow wound up in happy household. The two are constantly at each others' throats. What are the chances that they end up falling in love – with each other? None at all, of course! But there are chances that Jeremy and Lea can fall in love, and who are they?

**D**i**s**c**l**a**i**m**e**r**:** I don't anything. Everything belongs to the famously intelligent JK Rowling. Though I do own the plot, and a few characters I made up. Don't sue me as I don't own anything you recognize!

**0**2**. W**h**o **W**o**u**l**d** H**a**v**e** T**h**o**u**g**h**t?**

Lily dumped her bag on the grass with a relieved sigh and perched herself on a flat rock. She was by her favorite place at Hogwarts; the Lake and the greenery surrounding it. She smiled to herself as she took in the natural beauty before she reminded herself that classes would start again soon.

She pulled the package from her bag and couldn't help laughing at the wrapping paper. It was just like Jeremy to wrap a present in toilet paper. Her eyes spied a little piece of parchment stuck to the top of the package, and she pulled it off.

_Was in a hurry; forgot to wrap it up properly. Hope you don't mind._

_- Jeremy._

She shook her head fondly and then pulled away the toilet paper. It concealed a box; medium sized. She shook it a little to try to guess what was inside but the object made no sound. She sighed in regret but opened the box anyway; a second later, her amused laughter echoed around the beautiful area.

She held a silver tiara in her hands; though she was pretty sure it wasn't real silver. She would sock Jeremy one if he did that, he knew she despised mindless spending. But the tiara? It looked like something a five year old girl would wear while playing princess dress up.

Her forehead creased before she remembered. Of course! It was all related to a letter she had sent him last year. She could remember it word by word. It had been one of those deep confession type notes; as she had been very down while composing it.

_. . . not really, I have never been close to my sister. So, I missed all the dressing up games you have in your childhood, you know? I never had someone to share the experience with. It's not really because of my sister and me, also because of some family problems. Main point, I don't think I ever dressed up as a princess or a fairy . . ._

Jeremy's reply had been humorous. It was his style; he always lightened up the moment when it got too sad or depressing. He had hinted that he would get her to 'dress up' as it wouldn't do 'to miss a vital part of being a girl'.

Lily hadn't taken it seriously but Jeremy evidently had. She turned the tiara over, and noticed another piece parchment tied to it.

_Now you are not missing out on anything! Have fun, Lea!_

_- J._

Lily chuckled to herself as she placed the tiara on her head, brushing her red bangs out of her eyes. These were the things that made her like Jeremy; he could be so considerate while all the time he was being hilarious with his funny jokes and incidents.

She carefully reduced the size of the tiara, so that it wouldn't break or get ruined. Shouldering her bag, she began to race back to the castle. She had Transfiguration next, and she didn't want to get into McGonagall's bad books on the first day of the year.

**&**

That evening, Lily was probably the only one among her friends to get started on homework. She lay on her stomach on a rug in front of the fireplace, chewing on her quill as she read through her Charms textbook. Her friends occupied the armchairs and the couch around her, talking and laughing.

Lily muttered under her breath as she scribbled away furiously. She remained oblivious to her friends who were conversing loudly as she concentrated hard on her essay. A while later; she sat up and smiled triumphantly. "Finished!" she rolled up her scroll and began packing up her things.

"Ugh! This is definitely not healthy. How can she be so excited at the thought of _homework_?" Riley muttered.

Nathan rolled his eyes. "I think that we've already established the fact that she's weird."

Danny and Ed sniggered as Lily's head snapped up. "Hey! I heard that!"

The four grinned and chorused, "You were supposed to!"

Lily puffed her cheeks out and attempted to look like she was mad. The attempt failed however as the result made her looked like a stuffed duck. Ed managed to stop laughing and ordered, "Okay, enough mucking about. Let's hear some new stuff then, Lil, Nate."

Lily stuck her tongue out at him as she removed the guitar shaped locket from the chain around her neck. She enlarged the guitar with her wand, and proceeded to pull her hair into a bun with her wand poking through it. She opened her tattered notebook to a certain page, and strummed a few notes to herself, humming softly. Nathan had gotten his own guitar and notebook out, while Ed, Danny and Riley made themselves comfortable to listen.

Forming their band, _The Waves_, had been one of the best things to happen to Lily. She loved music and anything related to it. She was lucky that she had friends like Nate, Ed and Danny who felt the same way. And their band had been an immediate success at Hogwarts. They played varying genres of music and the students got accustomed to never expecting what would be played next by them. Ed was the drummer of the band; his electrifying performance sometimes made it hard for Lily to keep up. Lily and Nate played the guitar while Danny took the bass. Lily was the lead singer but there were a few exceptional performances in which Nate sang while Lily backed him up.

A few first years who had not yet gone up to their dormitories looked with interest at the four sixth years. All the other students were used to rehearsals taking place in the common room didn't take much notice but some were admittedly waiting to listen to a new song by the band.

"Okay, I wrote this around July. Max thinks it's good but weepy." Lily rolled her eyes and began to pluck at her guitar strings.

_Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see  
That I want and I need everything that we should be  
I'll bet she's beautiful, that girl he talks about  
And she's got everything that I have to live without_

Drew talks to me, I laugh cause it's just so damn funny  
That I can't even see anyone when he's with me  
He says he's so in love, he's finally got it right,  
I wonder if he knows he's all I think about at night

Lily closed her eyes, and opened them again.

_He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only thing that keeps me wishing on a wishing star  
He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do_

Drew walks by me, can he tell that I can't breathe?  
And there he goes, so perfectly,  
The kind of flawless I wish I could be  
She'd better hold him tight, give him all her love  
Look in those beautiful eyes and know she's lucky 'cause

_So I drive home alone, as I turn out the light  
I'll put his picture down and maybe  
Get some sleep tonight_

He's the reason for the teardrops on my guitar  
The only one who's got enough of me to break my heart  
He's the song in the car I keep singing, don't know why I do  
He's the time taken up, but there's never enough  
And he's all that I need to fall into..

Drew looks at me, I fake a smile so he won't see.

Lily ended the song with a soft note, her brows furrowed in concentration. She hadn't practiced the song enough and she wasn't sure if she had it right. She looked up expectantly towards her friends.

Riley winked at her as Ed and Danny pretended to think, while Nate stretched lazily. Lily huffed but then grinned as both the guys gave her thumbs up and Nate attacked her into a hug. She laughed as he sobbed on her shoulder, simpering, and "I can't believe my baby's all grown up! Writing songs!"

Lily pushed him off. Nate straightened up and said, "Yeah, it's definitely sappier than usual, but it'll do."

Lily rolled her eyes. "But I think we should change this note . . . here, you see. It stretches too much. What do you think?"

Ed wrinkled his nose. "Hmm. Yeah, I think so . . ."

**&**

James Potter couldn't help hooting with laughter as the Gryffindor Quidditch Captain and Keeper, Jacob Wood pushed Sirius Black off his broom due to a particularly offensive joke Sirius had just narrated.

"Black, if you say anything about my girlfriend and me again, I'm going to knock you off the team and get a new beater!" Wood threatened.

Nathan McCoy, the Seeker snorted with laughter, as Sirius regained his balance on the broom. "Hey, Wood! I was just joking, alright?" Sirius shouted obnoxiously.

"Stupid git," Wood muttered. "Now, this year has got to be our year –"

"Like it always is," Sirius interrupted. "Loosen up, Wood. Quidditch season doesn't start until October we're only the first week into school."

Wood glared at Sirius who was now munching on a Chocolate Frog. "I don't really know why I put up with you but –"

"It's because of my fantastic skills as a beater," Sirius said, wiggling his eyebrows.

"You – "

The voices of his teammates faded in the background as James spotted an owl making its way towards him. His heart lurched excitedly and he rose a bit in the air. "Hey, Diana," he beamed as the snowy owl dropped a letter on his shoulder and nipped his ear in a friendly manner.

He looked at his teammates who were hovering a few feet below him. Wood and Sirius were still having a fight and the remaining were watching them; laughing and shouting out comments. They all looked like they were going to be busy for some time. James grinned to himself, and balanced himself on his broom, ripping through the envelope which just said _Jeremy_ in neat penmanship.

Jeremy,

_I can't believe it! Thank you so much! I can't bring myself to believe that you even took notice of my gloomy letter! I sent it to you last year! _

_Again, thanks so much for the tiara! I wish we hadn't made that pact. I would have been able to send you a picture then! My best friend and I spent ages playing dress up! It was so much fun! I'm afraid our other friends thought we had lost our marbles when we asked them to be our photographers! They're all male so what do they know anyway of playing dress up, so who cares about them? _

_Oh my OWLs. I did well, I think. Better than I was expecting, actually. What about you? McGonagall was pretty happy with me because I scraped an 'E' in her subject. I've never been good at Transfiguration, anyways. _

_Ohh, grounded were you? Well, I wouldn't just put the blame on your best friend. I'm sure you had your share of trouble! That's no problem; my sister was being a sissy anyway. She's scared of owls, and wouldn't let any in the house. I had to wait for night to intercept my friends' owls. I wouldn't want to have Romero wait that long. That owl is weak enough already._

_Thanks again and love,_

Lea.

Lea could be such a goof at times, James chuckled. He had sent her the tiara at a whim, her letter had sounded really sad and he couldn't help but curse her sister for making her so unhappy. Who couldn't like a person like Lea?

She did well on her OWLs? Bullshit. James was sure that she gotten all OWLs; she was very intelligent though she would never tell him her grades. She was probably as smart as that snob Lily Evans.

He was still chuckling, thinking of Lea with the tiara on when Nathan McCoy called out to him. He hadn't noticed Nathan's eyes following him, a calculating look in them. "Hey Potter! Get back here! Wood's finished fighting with Black!"

He pocketed the letter and flew a few feet down where Wood was now giving his famous pep talks. Sirius mouthed the words along with Wood's voice, knowing it by heart. Edith Martinez, one of James's fellow chasers and the only female on the team, rolled her eyes and chucked the Quaffle at Sirius. "Shut it, Sirius! Or we'll get stuck listening to Wood's speeches again and again!"

"Sure thing, Martinez!"

He tuned out their conversation again as he thought of the pact that he had made with Lea, and she had mentioned it in her letter. They both hadn't mentioned the pact since they had made it; so he thought it was quite odd. The pact had been suggested by James in the middle of last year which had been his fifth year. He couldn't be sure of Lea's year, since they hadn't told each other anything that could identify them as they wanted to keep their identities secret. He didn't really know her age, her name, her year but he was quite sure that she was Gryffindor. James had found out that he harbored feelings for Lea, which were more than platonic. He had been horrified and surprised and had cut off contact with Lea for almost a month. He ignored her constant letters, as he couldn't understand why he could like – or love – a girl he hadn't seen nor met in reality. But as time went on and James realized that he was causing Lea quite a lot of pain by acting like a git, as Remus had kindly put it, he had written back, his letters filled with profuse apologies. He had wanted to test his erm . . . love, and had asked Lea not to meet nor tell each other anything which might leak out their identities until the Christmas Ball in sixth year.

Her agreement had made James sure of one thing, if not of others. She was a fourth year or up since she had agreed readily and only fourth years or up were allowed in balls. James was glad of that. Remus would have never let him hear the end of it if he discovered that James harbored secret feelings for such a young girl. He could only hope that she was around his age.

The other chaser, seventh year Lance Clarkson had dived to catch the Quaffle and his shout brought James back to Hogwarts. "Wood, can you just shut up already and start the practice?" He rolled his eyes at James, who grinned back. James was pretty good friends both with Lance and his younger sister, Riley. He had known the siblings since childhood, as their fathers were important figures at the Ministry. Riley and Lance were his company at the boring functions James's father dragged him to. He would probably be closer to Riley during the school years if she wasn't Lily Evans's best friend, who was his mortal enemy.

"Hey Lil! Riles!" Lance called out cheerfully. James huffed; speak of the devil. Riley Clarkson strode out into the pitch, rolling her eyes at Wood and Sirius who were still arguing. She flipped her blonde hair as she turned to look at Evans.

"Hey Lil! Get here and hurry up!" Riley said, smiling as she waved her brother and Nathan McCoy down. Evans, shockingly short in front of Riley, was currently shoving books in her bag. She slung her bag on her shoulder and was left with just two books in her hand. She stuck her tongue out at Riley; James thought, _And she calls _me_ immature. _

As the two girls stood by each other, conversing with Lance and Nathan, James was once again struck by how different the two were. And yet they got along famously. He couldn't help but chortle as Riley gave Andrew Bell, a seductive wink which caused Lance to glare at the other Gryffindor beater. Evans and Nathan laughed openly, leaning on each other for support as Riley reprimanded her brother. James had to admit, Riley was pretty bold in the guys department. Even her uniform mirrored that. She wore the school skirt several inches short and had the blouse unbuttoned a bit. If Riley hadn't been such an old friend, James would have gone for her himself. And if he hadn't had Lea.

Evans on the other hand, had her skirt the perfect length and though her tie was loosened, her blouse was buttoned up. She brushed her bangs out of the way, and was laughing so hard that she dropped her books on the ground. Lance leant down to pick them up, and stopped in mid way, staring at something that had fallen out of the book.

He hooted with laughter. "Lil, Riles, what are you two _doing_?!" Riley and Lily exchanged a puzzled look, before understanding what he meant. Both screeched and darted towards Lance. He let them have the piece of parchment, still chortling. Nathan watched on smirking and said, "Tell me about it. And Ed, Danny and I had to _watch_ it. _And_ photograph it. Funniest thing since the house elf back home walked in on my sister and her boyfriend in the middle of a snog fest and freaked out. Riley and Lily were both prancing about in those ridiculous dresses!"

James furrowed his brows, as Lily and Riley pretended to strangle Nathan. He was tempted to snatch parchment from Evans and see what the fuss was about. Surely, it was good blackmailing material. But he stayed put on his broom, too good in a mood to be in the centre of a duel.

He was rereading Lea's letter, and listening to the team's conversation and Lance and Nathan's with the girls when Wood's loud shout startled him. "Honestly, is this Quidditch practice or a socializing party?!"

Sirius rolled his eyes. Edith Martinez looked tempted to grab the Beaters' bat and smack Wood with it. "_You_ tell us, Wood," she muttered grumpily. "You're the one who's been conversing with Black since the past hour."

**&**

**The Gryffindor Quidditch Team (Just for reference!)**

**Chasers: **Lance Clarkson, James Potter, Edith Martinez

**Beaters: **Andrew Bell, Sirius Black

**Keeper: **Jacob Wood

**Seeker: **Nathan McCoy

**A/N: Hi all!! That was the second chapter! I have to admit i was a bit surprised and shocked when i realized i had no reviews BUT eleven people had added this story to their alerts. That was strange. Please, a request: if you read, then do tell me what you think about it. Thanks!**

**Song used is **_Teardrops on my Guitar _**by **_Taylor Swift._


	4. Chapter 3

**E**x**p**e**c**t T**h**e **U**n**e**x**p**e**c**t**e**d

**S**u**m**m**a**r**y****: Au-ish. **James Potter is the heir to millions while Lily Evans is someone who somehow wound up in happy household. The two are constantly at each others' throats. What are the chances that they end up falling in love – with each other? None at all, of course! But there are chances that Jeremy and Lea can fall in love, and who are they?

**D**i**s**c**l**a**i**m**e**r**:** I don't anything. Everything belongs to the famously intelligent JK Rowling. Though I do own the plot, and a few characters I made up. Don't sue me as I don't own anything you recognize!

.**0**3**. **T**h**i**n**g**s** W**e ****W**o**u**l**d** N**e**v**e**r **K**n**o**w.

Lea,

_It's great that you liked the tiara! Man, I wish I could see the pictures! You're dressed up? I though you hated dressing up? Oh, so you went crazy and your friends went crazy with you as well? Sounds like a merry party! _

_Please, Lea, don't try to insult my intelligence. I'm pretty sure you get all your OWLs. Me, on the other hand; I did well. (Sounds familiar?) My mum was pleased. (She won't tell me but I'm sure that she was expecting me to fail.)_

_Lea! I'm shocked that you have little faith in me! But to clear it up, yeah, I was involved in what made my mum ground us. But ninety percent of it was my best friend's fault. He's such a dog. (Inside joke!)_

_Hmm, your sister isn't a particularly nice person is she? I know, right! Romero is such a weakling! Maybe I should have taken Dad's advice and gotten another owl. But I love that old thing anyways so I probably wouldn't have._

_Is it me or is Vector particularly evil this year?_

Jeremy.

**&**

Jeremy,

_Oh, shut up. I though you were supposed to like me? Fine, I do like to dress up but I'm not that sort of girl who stands in front of a mirror for ages! That does not mean that I don't like to look nice! Yes, actually it was really fun. I got one of my best friends – who is a guy – to cat walk! It was so hilarious!!_

_Oh, well. I can't tell you my grades, can I? So, shut up. (Again!)  
Of course not, Jeremy! I have complete faith in you! And I'm glad to see that you admitted your part in whatever you did which resulted in the punishment form your mum. Smart woman, she is. And the dog thing? I'm not even going to ask._

_My sister? You think? She's an absolute hag I tell you! Enough about her; I try to forget her when I'm at Hogwarts. I completely agree with that! Romero is the cutest owl alive! Diana's a close second, but yeah, even though Romero's slow, he's great! _

Professor _Vector is perfectly _nice_. I love Arthimancy! _

_Love, _Lea.

**&**

"Merlin, I wish you would stop that!" Lily said, in mock shock. Alice, one of her good friends, sprang apart from her long time boyfriend, Frank Longbottom.

Alice's cheeks colored as she glared at Lily, who replied with a grin and threw her arm around her shoulders. Frank laughed good-naturedly, returning Lily's wave. "So, what have you been up to lately, Lily?" Alice asked, as her blush faded.

"Nothing much," Lily shrugged. "Classes, and homework, and the band practices take up my time. What about you two? Other than . . . ." She added, smirking.

Frank rolled his eyes as Alice slapped Lily's arm. Lily giggled, as the three continued to the great Hall for lunch. "Oh, nothing much. I met Frank's mother over the summer, and Merlin, is she a nightmare! I mean, she's not that bad, but she's a perfectionist! And she hated my clumsiness! You know I'm as clumsy as you are Lily!"

Lily smiled. "Gee, thanks for the compliment." She grinned at Frank, whose eye-roll told her that Alice was exaggerating.

Alice shook her head frantically. "I didn't mean it like that, Lily –" she broke off as Lily walked into the wall instead of through the doors to the Great Hall. Alice couldn't help laughing as Lily rubbed her nose gingerly. "I meant it like that!" she pointed out.

"Oh, shut up," Lily grumbled. She massaged her nose which had turned slightly red as she followed the giggling Alice and Frank in through the doors. Exchanging a few more words with the two, Lily set off to join her own friends as they turned to head off towards Marlene McKinnon and Benjy Fenwick.

"What did you do?" Riley asked, staring at her nose as Lily flung herself onto a seat and pulled a plate filled with mashed potatoes towards her. Lily looked at her questioningly, "What?"

"Your nose is all red." Riley was plainly trying not to laugh. Nate looked up from his fully loaded plate and scrutinized her. "Yeah," he agreed.

Lily scowled at her. "Yeah, so?"

Riley laughed openly as Nate smirked. He leaned over and ruffled Lily's hair, and she slapped his hand away. "Merlin, Lily. You're such a klutz. Did you walk into a suit of armor this time?" Nate asked, his grey eyes twinkling.

"Door," Lily muttered, blushing even more as they howled with laughter. This was a regular practice; Lily collided with things so often that it was normal to see some part of her body bruised. Then Lily would blush and her cheeks would turn a flaming red while her friends teased her playfully about it. This particular occasion was no different.

"Okay guys, stop it," Lily whined. Nate wrapped his arm around her, and flicked her ear. She stuck her tongue out at him. Then they began exchanging first week complains. Riley was in the middle of explaining how the Venomous Tentacula had snatched at her from behind in Herbology, which she didn't have with either of her two best friends, when a school owl swooped through a high window and dropped a letter on Lily's head. She shrieked in surprise, and covered her head while the letter slid to her lap.

Nate rolled his eyes as Lily snatched the letter up. It only said _Lea_ in that messy scrawl she recognized oh-so-quickly. She grinned happily and pulled her Potions textbook out and tucked the latter in. Replacing the book back in her bag, she saw that Professor Slughorn was trying to get her attention. She sighed wearily. Riley grinned and said cheerily, "Better go and see what Slug wants."

Lily nodded, wrinkling her nose. She bounced off, swinging her bag on her shoulders.

1Nate stared after for a moment and then leaned towards Riley. She looked at him in curiosity. "You okay Nate?"

"Yeah," he said impatiently. "Listen, Riles. I saw Diana delivering a letter to James Potter at Quidditch practice yesterday."

Riley stared at him, stupefied. "What?" Nate nodded at her seriously.

"Yeah, and he looked pretty happy reading whatever it was," Nate stated.

They both stared at each other; their expressions filled with horror, helplessness and disbelief. "But James can't be Jeremy!" Riley said in a hissed whisper.

Lily had never told them anything about Jeremy. All through the end of fourth year and throughout fifth year she had been scribbling notes and letters and sending them off with Diana, her owl. After receiving or sending of those letters, a goofy smile remained pasted on her face. When they had finally asked, Lily had been hesitant but had told them. A little bit; never the full details. She had just told them of the time when she had sent Diana to deliver letters to her parents, both her grandmothers, her muggle friend and her sister all in one setting. Diana, on the return back to Hogwarts, had gone into the wrong dorm window and had collapsed with exhaustion. A week later she had returned to Lily, fully recovered but she held a letter from the guy who had nursed her back to health. Lily had told her friends that Jeremy had ranted in that first letter, telling her how careless she was. How she didn't care about her pet. How stupid she was to send her owl to such a long journey. How much of an idiot she was.

Though Lily's reply had been in defense of herself, she had thanked Jeremy for taking care of her owl. Since then their correspondence had started. Although, Lily had never told them anything beyond that, Nate and Riley both suspected that there was something more than friendship there. Lily had come to depend on Jeremy more than she herself knew; she told him everything. Her heart was open to him and Riley and Nate could only pray that he didn't break it.

"No," Riley said firmly. "Jeremy is _not_ James. He can't be for Merlin's sake! They fight all day long; they duel, they complain about each other, they hate each other!"

Nate looked at her steadily. "They say that there is a fine line between hate and love."

Riley stared at him in horror. "We can't be sure about that!"

"Sure we can't," he agreed. "But it's possible. Definitely possible."

**&**

Around two weeks later, Lily was heading back to the Gryffindor common room after a prefects' meeting. She had just pushed a tapestry open and had been clambering over it, when she heard a loud yell. She turned around quickly, and heard another yell. Rushing through a corridor, she pulled her wand out.

The scene she saw in front of her made her gasp.

James Potter and Sirius Black were laughing their heads off at a hanging in mid-air Severus Snape. It also appeared that they had cast a Silencing Charm on him as Severus's mouth moved furiously but no words came out.

"POTTER! Black!" Lily shrieked.

"Crap," she heard Sirius mutter. Lily was actually on very good terms with Sirius and the Marauders; it was James whom she couldn't stand. But at the moment, she was livid with anger and couldn't care less if Sirius was one of her really good friends.

Lily flicked her wand, and Severus hurtled to the floor. Their eyes met and she turned her faze away, cheeks burning. She couldn't forget the last time she had tried to help him only to be called the most offensive word for a muggleborn witch. _Mudblood._ That incident had made her hate James even more as in her mind, he had been the one to push Severus to his edge. She ignored the pleading look on his face and faced her Gryffindor classmates.

"Thirty points from Gryffindor. And detention." She smirked at them as Sirius let out a howl while James looked at her coldly. "For a week," she completed her sentence, making Sirius drop his jaw even more.

"Aw, come on Lily! For a _week_?" Sirius asked in despair.

"Yes, Sirius. For a week. Now get to your common rooms before Filch catches you all and you get more detentions." Severus glowered at the two Marauders before walking off towards the dungeons after giving Lily a last look. James too, turned in the opposite direction and began to walk off. Sirius was just trying to get Lily to shorten their punishments while she laughingly refused, when James turned back and said, "Padfoot? Coming?"

Sirius ruffled Lily's hair and waved at her before running off after James. Lily followed after them slowly, watching the moonlight reflect off the high windows. A moment later, she started as something flew towards her through a window.

"Hey Diana," Lily said softly as the owl perched on her shoulder. "You got something from Jeremy for me?" Diana hooted obligingly and stuck her left leg out. "Oh, a letter from Mum and one from Jeremy."

She ripped open the envelope that contained Mrs. Evans's letter and started to read. She reached the Fat Lady's painting and muttered the password; _Bubotuber Pus_. She clambered over the portrait hole and stomped over to where her friends were catching up on their homework.

"Petty's getting married," Lily announced as she pushed Nate out of a chair and took it for herself.

Nate snorted while Ed sniggered. "I can't believe that horse is going to get married. But yeah, she's getting married to the whale so it's fine, I guess."

Lily rolled her eyes but didn't say anything in defense of her sister. "She's fixed the date for the summer. Great! So this summer's going to be hell for me too. Arrggh!"

Riley smiled widely. "We're invited right?"

"You bet!" Lily snorted. "I definitely don't want to get bored. Which I will if I have to listen to Petty's constant twittering about her wedding dress and the bridesmaids and the cake and decorations and the list goes on."

Riley looked up from her essay. "You're going to be a bridesmaid?"

Lily snorted yet again. "Not if Petty can help it. And I don't want to be one actually. Vernon's sister Marge is going to be one and Petty's best friend is the maid of honor so I wouldn't mind if I was left to entertain the guests." A mischievous smile spread to her face. "And I'll be seventeen in January, and the wedding isn't until July . . . oh wow! This is going to be so much fun!"

Ed and Danny guffawed. Nate's eyes twinkled and he leaned forward. "Can I help you plan a list?"

Lily laughed loudly and flicked her wand. Nate's blond hair turned to a repulsing shade of olive green. "How about I do this to Petty when she walks down the aisle?"

**&**

Lily fidgeted restlessly. She was yet again attending a prefects' meeting the week later. She crossed her legs; and then uncrossed them. She sighed loudly and flipped her ponytail over one shoulder and then back to the other shoulder. The other prefects glanced at her confusedly wondering what had gotten the usually calm and poised Lily Evans so fidgety.

Lance Clarkson, Riley's brother and the Head Boy looked at her amusedly. She grinned back sheepishly and raised her hand. He nodded at her. "Um, I was wondering about the Christmas Dance. We've already discussed the Halloween Feast so I was thinking . . ." she trailed off as the Head Girl from Ravenclaw, Amanda 'Mandy' Newton nodded at her approvingly.

"Oh yes, Lily. Though the Dance initially was supposed to be a Ball, Professor Dumbledore requested something more casual. So it was changed to a dance. Now, as usual, fourth years and up are allowed unless invited by an older student. Lists will be put around the common rooms sooner than usual as we have to see how many students decided to stay on for Christmas to attend the Dance." Mandy broke off and looked inquiringly at Lance, who had cleared his throat.

"Also, we would love it if all of you guys pitched in to help with the decorations and stuff. Decoration of the Great Hall will take ages, you all probably know that."

Lily grinned happily. Only a few more weeks until she could meet Jeremy!

**&**

**A/N: I'm really glad that I finally have some reviews! I don't want to seem erm . . . greedy but reviews motivate me! I know many people are reading this and many readers have this story in alert, so do drop a line; it will make me happy. **

RainbowCrystal**; Ah yes!! I felt like ripping my hair out when I realized that 20 people have this on alert and I only got about 4 reviews! Thank you so much! Hope you continue reading! **:Crissy Evans**; I'm really glad that you didn't pass my story up and decided to read! Do continue and thanks! **: Serenity12345; **Thank you loads for your two reviews! Keep reading! **


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